During constrained path calculation or path re-optimization processes, conventional MPLS- and GMPLS-based traffic engineered transport services use link bandwidth, service expenses, and delay/jitter as traffic engineering (TE) link metrics. However, hardware components of TE routers and switches (e.g., a network processing unit, a control central processing unit, a hub, a peripheral component interconnect bridge, a memory management unit, a dynamic read only memory, an in/out controller, a micro-controller, a flash device, a field programmable gate array, a switch fabric, a backplane, and an optical connector) along a label switched path (LSP) can consume electrical energy to a point of being overloaded and thus emitting excessive heat. When the routers and switches generate excessive heat, an associated the cooling system (e.g., a fan) also accelerates in an effort to control the rising temperature. In some cases, the cooling system may not be able to reduce the temperature below a safe point, leading to malfunctioning of hardware components in a packet forwarding data path. When the hardware components malfunction, the data path malfunctions, causing data traffic drops, traffic mis-forwarding, and/or loss of traffic.
Thermal effects on data traffic that can result in traffic drops, traffic mis-forwarding, and/or loss of traffic are not conventionally considered a TE link metric, and are not used for constrained path calculation of traffic engineered label switched paths (TE-LSPs). Thus, the impact of these thermal effects is not conventionally considered in evaluating the performance, reliability, and availability of transport LSP services in MPLS and GMPLS traffic engineered networks.
Accordingly, there are long-felt industry needs for methods and apparatus that improve upon conventional methods and apparatus, including methods and apparatus that mitigate thermal effects on data traffic using advanced traffic engineering services in a MPLS network and/or a GMPLS network.